If you have the will and the aptitude to help people with healthcare needs, a health science career is a great fit. It also comes with high job security. The U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) forecasts job growth of up to 56% for health science careers through 2028 – that’s four times the growth for careers overall.
As a high school student, you can start on a health science career pathway now by taking career and technical education (CTE) courses. At the end of each course, you take an exam. If you pass, you get a certificate that gives you tangible proof of what you’ve learned and can be used to get an entry- to mid-level job and/or use for credit toward college classes.
In this post, I dig into 5 fast-growing health science career pathways and supporting CTE certificates high schoolers can work toward right now. We’ll look at forecast job growth and basic job details. I also examine stackable credentials, which are different CTE certifications that complement and build on each other. Credentials you can use to secure an entry- to mid-level position or for college course credits or both.
A medical and clinical laboratory technician is one health science career that doesn’t necessarily work directly with patients. Instead, people in this role work in a laboratory setting with other technicians to test blood, urine, and fluids to diagnose disorders and help doctors treat patients effectively.
According to O*NET OnLine, a career exploration and job analysis tool sponsored by the U.S. Department of Labor, the work activities a medical and clinical lab technician does regularly include:
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The future for medical and clinical laboratory technicians is bright. According to MyNextMove.com, future job opportunities are very likely for this career. O*NET OnLine, which uses Bureau of Labor Statistics 2021 wage and 2020–2030 employment projects data, cites:
You may be interested in pursuing a career as a medical and clinical laboratory technician, but is it the right role for you? The best way to find out is to discover your aptitudes. Aptitudes are the natural ability to learn or perform in given areas. They solidify around the age of 14.
You can find out what your job- (or performance-) based aptitudes are by taking YouScience Discovery. It’s an aptitude-based college and career guidance solution. When you use it to uncover your aptitudes, it matches your aptitudes and interests or both by fit for more than 600 in-demand careers. Students who take Discovery often find they have aptitudes for careers they never considered and may have never heard of.
A recent study by YouScience, State of the Future U.S. Workforce, Student Ability Report, found that more students have the aptitude for health science careers than interest.
You’re likely to excel as a medical and clinical laboratory technician if your YouScience Discovery results find you have a strong talent for:
The image above shows the author’s aptitude match in YouScience Discovery for a role as medical and clinical laboratory technician. The orange dots show the author’s aptitude. The white dots are the ideal aptitude for the career.
What if your aptitudes don’t align with a career as a medical and clinical laboratory technician? That’s okay, Discovery shows you hundreds of careers that do match your aptitudes. And knowing your aptitudes and the matching careers is critical for finding the fastest path to your best-fit future.
In addition to aptitudes, Discovery assesses your interests. Those destinated for a satisfying career as a medical and clinical laboratory technician will be interested in careers that are:
Discovery also shows you how your interests align with each job.
The image above shows the author’s interest match for a role as medical and clinical laboratory technician. The blue dots show the author’s interest. The white dots are the ideal interests for the career.
If you plan on a future as a medical and clinical laboratory technician, you want to finish high school. You also want to plan on earning a bachelor’s or associate degree.
You can take a shortcut by earning CTE certificates in high school that help you skip entry-level college courses or go right to work in an entry- to mid-level career.
Precision Exams by YouScience offers industry-recognized certifications that can help your CTE teacher prep you for a role as a medical and clinical laboratory technician as well as for other health science career pathway, including:
The nation needs nurses perhaps more than for any other health science career. McKinsey & Company reported that there may be a shortage of between 200,000 to 450,000 registered nurses (RNs) by 2025. And, in addition to RNs, the nation needs nursing assistants, nurse practitioners, and acute care nurses too.
What do nurses do? A lot. According to O*NET OnLine, the top activities in a nurse’s day include:
The job outlook for nursing roles doesn’t quite mesh with reports of a nursing shortage. The BLS forecasts only a normal job growth rate of 9% for RNs and 8% for nursing assistants. Regardless, the nation will need nurses, who per O*NET OnLine, can expect:
| Registered nurses | Nursing assistants | |
| Median annual wages | $77,600 | $30,310 |
| Annual job openings | 194,500 | 187,000 |
You’ll also find nursing enjoyable if you find the following types of work interesting.
YouScience Discovery assesses interests as well as aptitudes and shows you the types of work you might enjoy based on your interests. The interests here are those of the author.
RNs typically need an associate’s or bachelor’s degree while a nursing assistant needs at least a high school diploma. A postsecondary certificate can also help a nursing assistant get ahead as a certified nursing assistant or CNA.
Whether you want to become an RN, nursing assistant, or another type of nurse, you can take advantage of your high school CTE program to earn certifications now.
High school students interested in a future career in nursing can get a jump start by taking these exams:
Dietitians and nutritionists are experts in and advisors on diet and nutrition. They work directly with patients or patient groups (such as at a hospital or care facility) on what foods they should and shouldn’t eat. They’re also critical advisors for patients with eating disorders, allergies and food sensitivities, as well as those undergoing chemotherapy and other health challenges.
The outlook for roles as a dietitian and nutritionist is strong. The projected growth in new jobs from 2020 to 2030 is 10 to 15% – faster than average. And O*NET OnLine shows that for this role, the:
People with natural abilities for these aptitudes will excel as dietitians and nutritionists and they’ll enjoy their work because it will come naturally to them.
You’ll also be interested in types of work that let you be:
According to the BLS, dietitians and nutritionists need a bachelor’s degree. Degrees in programs that cover dietetics, foods and nutrition, food service systems management, or a related area are the most common.
Added on-the-job training and often a license are also required. The most common license is the Registered Dietitian (RD) credential, administered by the Commission on Dietetic Registration of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. Some dietitians and nutritionists hold a master’s degree.
High school students can get a jump start as a future dietitianand nutritionist by taking these exams:
Physical therapists (PT) help people recover mobility after a surgery or injury or deal with chronic conditions that affect mobility and comfort. They may work in a hospital, care facility, clinic, or independently. Physical therapy assistants (PTAs) help physical therapists and act much like a medical assistant would for a doctor or a dental assistant for a dentist.
According to O*NET OnLine, the top activities in the day for a PT or PTA include:
The BLS forecasts higher than average job growth and solid salaries for both PTs and PTAs through 2030. It forecasts 21% growth for PTs and a whopping 32% for PTAs.
| PTs | PTAs | |
| Median annual wages | $95,620 | $49,180 |
| Annual job openings | 239,200 | 140,500 |
PTs and PTAs use inductive reasoning abilities to draw conclusions from what’s in front of them and quickly solve patient needs. They use sequential reasoning to lay out patient information in a logical order, understand it, and explain it to the patient, doctors, and other care providers.
Those attracted to physical therapy are typically interested in work that is investigative, social, and realistic.
PTs need a bachelor’s degree and roughly 44% hold a master’s. PTAs most often hold a 2-year associate degree. Both career pathways can take advantage of CTE certificates earned in high school.
If you’re an organized people person, a future as a medical assistant may be your calling. And you have a variety of options. O*NET OnLine lists 10 job titles for medical assistants, including ophthalmic assistant, ophthalmological assistant, optometric assistant along with medical and doctor assistants.
Medical assistants, by any title, are the people you first talk to when you see a health care provider. The ones who come in and take your history and find out why you’re there. O*NET OnLine lists the top daily activities for medical assistants as:
The forecast growth for medical assistant jobs is high at least 15% through 2030 – that’s a bright outlook according to O*NET OnLine. O*NET also lists:
So, what are the natural abilities that will help someone excel at and enjoy being a medical assistant? The top aptitudes for this role in Discovery are as follows:
In addition to aptitudes, medical assistants will excel at work that meets their interests for activities that are social, conventional, and realistic.
According to O*NET OnLine, medical assistants need at least a high school diploma. Some jobs require an added postsecondary certificate or some college, but not a degree.
And if you come out of high school with a CTE certificate or stackable certificates specific to medical assistants, you come out ahead of fellow graduates who don’t have them.
Find added stackable credentials below.
Here are a few added certificates to add to your “stack” no matter what health science career pathway you choose to head down.
21st Century skills – also known as soft skills or employability skills – are cited by 92% of hiring managers as equally or more important than hard skills.
The Precision Exams 21st Century Success Skills certification from YouScience gives you tangible proof of your employability skills, which include critical thinking, problem solving, creativity, leadership, teamwork, and collaboration skills, and more.
Virtually every job today involves technology. O*NET OnLine includes a Technology Skills section for every job included in this post. No matter the career you pursue, you need to know how to use email and various software.
A good place to start is with a certificate that proves you have basic computer knowledge. The Precision Exams Computer Technology I certification assesses computer literacy. And Business Office Specialist offers a foundation in all things computer.
There are a lot of rewarding health science careers. If you want to find your best-fit career, take Discovery to uncover your aptitudes, your matching careers, and the education pathway – including CTE certifications – to get you there.
Ask your school about YouScience. Or buy your own copy of Discovery to uncover your natural talents, best-fit careers, and aptitude-based resume language.
